Contact: Laura Smith, Office of the Governor, 608-261-2162
Modern, Wisconsin Made, Trains Will Stop at 101 E. Wilson St. in Downtown Madison
MADISON – Governor Jim Doyle announced today that Madison’s high speed rail station will be located at the Wisconsin Department of Administration building at 101 E. Wilson St in downtown Madison. Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz joined Governor Doyle for the announcement.
“I’m pleased to announce that after further study, and after considering public input from workshops held earlier this month, the new rail station will be located at 101 E. Wilson St.,” Governor Doyle said. “We have been working with the community to make this a station everyone can be proud of and this location provides a good jumping off point for that discussion. We’ll work to do this in a way that not only makes sense but also in a way that showcases Madison and Wisconsin.”
“For Madison, this location not only means a successful high speed rail line downtown, but it also means an exciting redevelopment of the surrounding blocks,” Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said. “This site brings tremendous potential for an intermodal station as well as economic development. I want to thank Governor Doyle and DOT for considering public input in their decision. We are excited to continue working with the state to make this station successful and to capitalize on the potential it creates.”
About 200 people attended public workshops hosted by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to discuss the location of the rail station. According to public comments regarding the location, people are looking the station to provide good intermodal connections for buses, taxis, bicyclists, and pedestrians. People commenting also said that design of the station is important and the station design should focus on overall customer experience.
In January, Governor Doyle announced Wisconsin will receive $823 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to build high-speed rail service to connect its centers of commerce and create thousands of jobs. Wisconsin is receiving $810 million to build high-speed passenger rail service between Milwaukee and Madison, $12 million to improve service between Chicago and Milwaukee, and $1 million to make final determinations on a route between Wisconsin and the Twin Cities – the next step toward connecting Chicago, Milwaukee and Madison with the Twin Cities. The project is estimated to create thousands of jobs in Wisconsin in fields like construction, engineering, design and supply.
Construction of the rail segment between Madison and Milwaukee will begin this year.
By 2013, people will be able to ride in modern, Wisconsin made train cars from Madison to Chicago and beyond.
